Don’t Take Your Burnout With You

As Physicians, it’s easy to believe that burnout is entirely related to our current job, or our line of work in general. The statistics on physician burnout are everywhere, and the chatter about the need for systemic change helps our beliefs fall right in line: “it’s my job’s fault.” And thus, we believe that when we “finally break free,” and move on to other professional opportunities in industry, or even quit working all together, that we will finally be free of burnout.

And that is where we go wrong.

I’m not saying that burnout is unrelated to your work. It isn’t. And yet, it is very easy to discount that our training has created deep neural pathways (beliefs, patterns of thinking) that reinforce burnout. These pathways live inside you, no matter where you go.

Here’s an example.  You were never told as an Attending not to eat lunch. Many of us came to believe that we couldn’t stop to eat lunch because we were too busy (unless we were forced to be at a lunch meeting perhaps). We believed that if we stopped to take care of our own human needs in a kind, and healthy way (rather than cramming a donut in our face in between patients, maybe), that the world would crumble. We would be even more behind, make people angry, people would get sicker, people would suffer, any number of stories we have come to believe. We were trained to ignore our own needs in service of others so well, that no one needed to police us anymore, we would do it ourselves.

Burnout creates a mindset of limits and “nos” that need to be unwound. Vacation, quitting, time off, a whole weekend of sleep, starting a new job; none of these things stop burnout, unless you start to change your mind. 

If you are stepping into a new professional arena, or even thinking about it, start to look at your patterns of thinking, at your limiting beliefs, at the areas in your mind where you hear yourself saying “no, can’t do that.” And ask yourself, is that true? What are you believing is possible? What are you not believing is possible? Are you giving yourself permission to be in control of your time, your energy, your needs?

I believe that we can undo burnout, regardless of our current employment (or lack thereof). But it takes attention to your thoughts, attention to what you are believing to get out of the old neural grooves and to start adopting some new thoughts. And when we think and experience the new ways over and over? That is when we will actually start to believe new things.

Find Dr. Megan Melo, Healthier For Good, PLLC here:

Website: www.healthierforgood.com

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Ready to make a career transition to pharma/biotech… want to explore a way to use your medical training and knowledge in a fulfilling way without nights and weekends call or charting. Watch this webinar on Getting Past the Three Major Hurdles to a Career in the Pharma Industry HERE.